By now, all drivers should know that fatigued driving can be a major factor in tragic auto accidents. The federal government recognizes fatigued or overworked truckers can be a potentially lethal threat to the public. To combat this danger, the government passed regulations to limit the amount a trucker can legally drive in a day or a week. In this brief video, a South Carolina 18-wheeler accident attorney reveals those limits, and how the government seeks to keep truckers and trucking companies in compliance.
If you've been hurt or lost a loved one in a big rig wreck, proving the trucker drove in violation of these regulations can be a major part of your case. No one is above the law, especially when breaking it causes grievous injury or death.
Transcript
We're talking about truck or driving limitations. The federal government recognizes overworked truckers and fatigued truckers is a major problem on our roads. That’s why they've passed regulations that limit the amount a trucker can drive in a day and in a week. The daily limit is 11 hours in any 24-hour period. You’re only eligible to drive those 11 hours if you are not on duty for the prior 10 straight hours and then there's the weekly limit. That’s tied to whether the trucking company uses commercial trucks every day. If they do a trucker can only be on duty for 70 hours in any 8 day stretch. If they don't, a truck is limited to 60 hours in any seven-day stretch. Federal regulations require truckers to keep track of their work status in a written book called a logbook or on an on-board computer. Sadly some truckers and trucking companies chase the dollar instead of protecting our safety. That can cause truckers to drive when they're too tired to do it or to overwork to be safe.
When that happens there can be devastating consequences for innocent victims. Even worse, proven truckers and their trucking companies have violated the regulations to keep them within their driving limits can be very tricky. Sadly, sometimes trucking companies will alter or even destroy evidence in a cover-up attempt to avoid responsibility for allowing their truckers to drive too much.
Truck Crash Attorneys Can Determine If Fatigue Played a Role in Your Accident
If you've been hurt badly or suffered the loss of a loved one as a result of a trucking accident and you think it may be due to a fatigued or overworked trucker, you owe it to yourself to ask an experienced truck and lawyer who knows how to find the evidence to prove whether the trucking company violated these regulations. You can start that process right now by filling out our get help now form. I thank you for thinking about this with me and I hope I see you soon.
